John A. Kessler,
MD
Benjamin Boshes Professor, Department of Neurology
To Contact Dr. Kessler:
phone: 312-908-5035
e-mail: jakessler@northwestern.edu
Dr. Kessler's website
Research Interest
The laboratory of Dr. John Kessler focuses on two general areas, neural stem
cells and neurotrophic growth factors. They are interested in defining mechanisms
regulating neuronal and glial differentiation of neural progenitor cells,
and on understanding how growth factors promote neuronal survival and phenotypic
expression. These studies seek to identify the cytokines that regulate stem
cell proliferation and differentiation, to define the intracellular signals
that transduce their effects, and to understand how the effects of different
growth factors are integrated by the progenitor cell. Although the principal
focus of these studies is on definition of mechanisms underlying stem cell
differentiation, a significant effort is also devoted to applying molecular
neurobiology to clinical problems.